A routine administrative update turned into a flashpoint on X after former federal minister Chaudhry Fawad Hussain questioned why women were joining the police force drawing swift backlash from journalists and social media users alike.
The heated debate started when journalist Hassan Khan shared a post about the appointment of Kainat Azhar Khan as Islamabad’s new Chief Traffic Officer (CTO). Khan had recently visited the Red Zone, inspecting the Secretariat Blocks, Parliament House, Parliament Lodges and other key buildings as part of her new role.
Fawad Hussain responded to the post with a question that set off the storm: “Why women are opting to become police officers? Most of them are completely useless as cops, also it’s terrible career choice even otherwise”.
Senior journalist Hamid Mir was among the first to push back. “This is called male chauvinism,” he wrote on X. “Some men believe that they are naturally superior to women in intelligence, ability, or importance. I have seen same kind of Pakistani men bowing down in front of female diplomats”.
Fawad responded quickly to Mir, insisting his remarks had been misread. “This is not chauvinism, you made statement without understanding what I said. Most capable of the lot should choose to be scientist or entrepreneur instead of wasting talent for lust of power. Cops don’t need to be very capable. Encouraging most capable people to opt for useless professions is stupidity.”
Journalist Mariana Babar also weighed in, reposting Fawad’s tweet with a pointed note: “Am busy but will respond at length to your tweet on Achakzai and now women career choices. Despicable, unwarranted. You appear to be seeking attention. You will get it”.
The clarification did little to contain the fallout. Reactions to his original post poured in. “Why are you still relevant in 2026, you should be in the stone age for thoughts like these,” one user wrote.
Another flipped his logic back at him: “Why men are opting to become politicians? Most of them are completely useless as politicians, also it’s terrible career choice even otherwise”.
Several users pushed back on the substance of his argument. “There is 50% women population of the country. That’s a very misogynistic statement. They have the right to do the job they want. Statistically, women are less corrupt than men and they do their jobs properly,” one wrote.
Another added: “There are plenty of places where woman police would work better than men”. One user asked plainly: “Who are you to tell women what career choices they should opt for? Stay in your lane”.
Kainat Azhar Khan, whose posting triggered the entire exchange, is a BS-18 officer of the Police Service of Pakistan. The transfer order was issued by IGP (Inspector General of Police) Islamabad Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi. She was appointed CTO following the transfer of Mohammad Sarfraz Virk, whose services have been placed at the disposal of the Punjab government.
She also holds additional charge of SSP (Senior Superintendent of Police) Operations Safe City, a role previously held by Awais Ali Khan, SP (Superintendent of Police) Capital Patrols.
Before her posting in Islamabad, Kainat had served as CTO and SP Cantt in Multan and as SDPO (Sub-Divisional Police Officer) Civil Lines and SDPO Cantt in Rawalpindi.
